TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo ensured that the South China Sea will be brought up in his meeting with China's President Xi Jinping this week. Jokowi and a limited entourage kicked off their visit to Chengdu, China today on Thursday, July 27, 2023. Both leaders will also discuss investment, China-Indonesia strategic projects, and regional to global issues.

"Every time I meet President Xi, the South China Sea is always brought up," said Jokowi when asked during the press conference in the Air Force Headquarters Halim Perdanakusuma, East Jakarta.

China's famous "nine-dashed lines" sovereignty claim over almost all of the South China Sea has previously been denied in a 2016 Permanent Court of Arbitration decision. The lines cut across exclusive economic zones of several ASEAN countries, namely Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, and Indonesia. South China Sea is often a source of contestation between ASEAN and China. Earlier, China's patrol vessels anger Phillippines and the US with their maneuvers in the area.

ASEAN and China have agreed to accelerate the discussion to draft a Code of Conduct (CoC) in the South China Sea during the ministerial meeting in Jakarta, on Thursday, July 13, 2023. CoC drafting is expected to be an agenda for several years but hopefully will help reduce the risk of conflict in the South China Sea.

Besides meeting with the leader, Jokowi will also visit China's entrepreneurs who "have and will be investing in Indonesia, especially in the downstream industry, petrochemical, renewable energy, and health sectors." Indonesia has partnered with China for 10 years in a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. As Indonesia's biggest trading partner, Indonesia-China has reached a staggering US$133.65 billion in bilateral trade in 2022 alone. Meanwhile, China as Indonesia's 2nd biggest investor, was even the first investor in last year's Q4.

DANIEL A. FAJRI

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